I wanted to write this post long, long back but you know how life takes over and you are stranded in the warp of time constrained, confused and chaotic.
But before embarking on the main topic, I want to dwell upon the ambit of literature which has expanded with time and encompassed a lot more than just literary narratives - be it novels, poems, dramas, plays, cinema. I was compelled to rethink when in one of the Bangla chat shows, a renowned singer(?) commented why Tagore’s lyrics should be included in school and college syllabi as subjects of study and analysis for students of literature. Thereon perhaps I too started closely listening to Tagore’s songs with a new perspective. A song is just not the musical score but also the words woven into it. Similarly, Tagore’s dance dramas or Nritya Natikas already form a unique part of Bengali literary legacy transcending passage of time and societal evolution. When we talk of today’s time, we are no more contained within the aforementioned periphery. Now we additionally have media like television(serials) and web(series) to narrate stories. Should we also count them within the definition of literature. Do they really have literary value of any means?
I remember the erstwhile tele serials of black and white TV era - Hum Log, Buniyaad, Nukkad, Wagle Ki Duniya. Hum Log and Buniyaad were scripted by well known Hindi novelists. They had strong story lines, spoke about common people and made families laugh and cry together. They were also directed by ace directors. The characters were made immortal by outstanding performances. Yes, they dragged a bit but never mind. These were introductions to Hindi Soap Operas. Then came Ramayana and Mahabharata - epics in episodic narrative.
Thereafter, TV was taken over by big Production Houses like Balajee Telefilms and TV serials became ever running glamour galore. TV productions meant investment as they grossed TRPs and raged on expensive advertisements. These Production Houses hired pulp fiction writers to create episodes. Story flew out of the window. Scripts were now stunt and gimmick based, emotional runners and vamp-centric. The serials ran on endless villainy. The vamp was as(and even more) glamorous as the female protagonist. Narratives concentrated on how much wrong can one woman(or man) do to the other.
I don’t know much about today’s teles as I lost interest in Hindi as well as Bangla serials. All are the same.
And then Zindagi happened. I mean Zindagi Channel which aired well received Pakistani Dramas or Tele Serials which were made available on Indian television. Zindagi was an endeavour to improve Indo-Pak relation through cultural exchange. Unexpectedly Indian viewers were gifted with a bouquet of classy, stylishly presented, well directed, limited episode serials which spoke of social issues and taboos similar to ours. Needless to say, they were highly relatable. Who can forget serials like Zindagi Gulzar Hai(Life Is A Bed Of Blossoms) and Humsafar(My Co-traveller)? But as a breath of fresh air soothes the body and soul and flows by Zindagi came and went as soon as political relationship between the two countries soured. Viewers were suddenly left wanting for more.
This was a lengthy preface to prove a point. As I started watching serial after serial on Zindagi, I realised I was not only being entertained but there were messages here to ponder upon, stories, to think over, characters to remember. These had literary worth, were timeless in their narration and classics on their own merit.
My colleagues, however, told me that there were plenty of such serials on YouTube. I, understandably veered towards them once again.
COVID-19 gave furthermore leisure hours to pursue this new found interest. Having given a long prologue, I come to the main discourse. In 2021, a Pakistani Serial got released - Raqeeb Se which literally meant To My Rival(In Love). It was a Momina Duraid Production under the banner of HumTV. It was directed by one of the renowned Directors of Pakistani Television - Kashif Nisar and written and scripted by again a very controversial writer, Bee Gul. In one of her interviews, Bee Gul(or Bee Bee Gul) said Raqeeb Se was a simple love story of complex characters. And how true it was!
In the dead of one winter night, Maqsood Sahib(Noman Ejaz) receives two unexpected guests - Sakina(Hadiqa Kiani) his ex-lover and her daughter Ameera(Iqra Raza) by Sakina’s marriage to Rafique(Saqib Sameer). A knock on the door opens the floodgates of an ill-fated love affair of two decades back. Maqsood Sahib is now middle aged and is married to Hajra(Sania Saeed) and has a daughter, Insha(Faryal Mehmood). Hereon starts the heart-wrenching story of five people who are brought together by a stroke of impulsive decision and compelled to share the same roof till they find meaning to their existence.
Unexpectedly, Hajra accepts Sakina, takes care of her and her child while Insha, her own daughter feels neglected at times. Again as a surprise-twist, Hajra and Insha are not unaware of the tragic love story of Maqsood Sahib. They not only have it by heart but also unequivocally feel that ishq ho to Maqsood Sahib ke jaisi ho(romance has to be like that of Maqsood Sahib or else not). But did they in their wildest of dreams have ever thought that the heroine of that fairy tale will land up one freezing night at their door step with her daughter? When seen in flesh and blood will the euphoria of bygone romance remain as it was before?
Oddly enough Hajra and Sakina bond with each other. Hajra has always felt that she has ruined Maqsood Sahib’s life by marrying him. He should belong to Sakina. Sakina is guilty of coming back to her lover after twenty odd years, battered and bruised, to save her daughter from the violence that she is subjected to by her over-possessive husband. She has nowhere to go. So she has come back to Maqsood Sahib. But she does not want to be known as a home breaker.
For Ameera, Maqsood Sahib, is the ideal lover( she is also aware of her mother’s past affair). He is the exact opposite of what her biological father is - rough, jealous, scheming and distrusting of his wife. Understandably, Ameera is drawn towards her mother’s lover. A reserved, composed, sophisticated man and a dutiful husband and father. It is admiration which gives way to childish pranks to draw his unwavering attention and thereafter incorrigible infatuation of a persona which is larger than life to her. Insha observes Ameera quietly. She is educated(a doctor) and a highly intelligent and sensitive person who has always felt that her father, though has been the sincere provider of the family, has not loved her the way a father should. She craves for that attachment but remains quiet, sometimes, vocalizing her thoughts which questions the status quo.
In this incredibly unreal situation, one fine morning drops in the villain of the piece - Rafique - who does not have one bit of qualm that her wife is staying with her ex-lover but is only worried about his prestige in the eyes of the villager. Also, he has other axes to grind. In lieu of giving his wife a divorce he wants the land adjacent to his which belongs to Maqsood Sahib.
And then there is Masood Sahib, Maqsood Sahib’s elder brother and his wife, Aatika(Saba Faizal). Masood Sahib is a politician who is preparing to fight the next election. He wants Maqsood Sahib to wed Sakina in a bid to take revenge of of his younger brother’s death whom Sakina’s brother had killed twenty years back.
Unbelievable, though it may sound, Hajra is ready to give away her husband to Sakina. Insha feels that her father is doing injustice to her mother whose life pivots around him. Yet in this crazily complex relational matrix, the four women bond together. It is sometimes pure guilt and sympathy on Hajra’s part mixed with an aching heart who cannot make out whether her husband actually wishes to leave her for Sakina. Sakina, on the other hand, hates to be the apple of discord. She is distraught and clueless what to do with her life. It is a kind of sibling jealousy between Insha and Ameera although Insha, inspite of herself, cannot come to hate Ameera and surprisingly understands her plight - the obsession of a deprived child. Amidst this kaleidoscope of variant emotions, it is the overwhelming reticence of Maqsood Sahib which dominates the lives of all these four women.
When I recommended this serial to my esteemed co blogger Shri J Mathur, after watching a few episodes, commented that he was quite irritated with Sakina always being in the weeping mode. True, even I had the same reaction. But then I thought but why not? A rustic, illiterate, subjugated woman who has nowhere to go, no future to look forward to, no ability to stand on her two feet, will she not feel cowered and over burdened by the turns of circumstances which were not in her favour?
Yet, these women turn the table on their own. Sakina realizes that she should be able to take decisions about her own life. Ameera, after a tragic and sudden twist in tale, learns to absorb pain. Insha marches out of an exploitative relationship. And Hajra finds her footing on her own merits. Here is a tale of astounding empowerment of four women who stand tall in the face of grief, deprivation, dark pasts and averts doom to the extent that the men in their lives become’The Others’.
Why have I written such a long post on a serial which has not even grossed the kind of viewership which it should have considering the content, performance, direction and narrative? It is just to underscore the point that even tele-dramas can be a notch above. It can have layers and layers of meaning. It can toil with contemporary issues with aesthetic aplomb. It can have that quintessential quality of being timeless that all classics are made up of.
The writer, Bee Gul, in one of the interviews, once said that she does not sketch out her stories beforehand. There is no pre-decided outline. No characterization. No possible story line. It just flows and perhaps in the process she finds herself face to face with the characters. When a knock on the door wakes up Maqsood Sahib’s family in the middle of the night the writer herself is not sure who these people are at the door. Who could they be? She asks herself. Though hard to assimilate that being an author myself I give in to the conclusion that every writer probably has his/her own way of discovering their narrative.
Having said that.truly To My Rival or Raqeeb Se is a journey, an explorer’s delight, a serendipitous find, a quest beyond all quests. I remember watching Roman Holiday in the cinema hall. When the film came to an end I felt extremely sad not because the story had an unhappy ending but just because the film had come to an end. And I kept on wondering how the princess will gear back to her regal life and how the commoner(a reporter) will find peace having fallen in love with someone who is unachievable.
As Raqeeb Se came to its finale, I suffered from the same kind of wistfulness. Will Sakina find true happiness ever in her life? Will Ameera be a continuance of Sakina’s story? Will Insha find her place in Maqsood Sahib’s heart? Will Hajra rewrite a romance of her own?
A romantic by heart, I think I will have to remain satisfied toying with the answers in all their permutations and combinations.
Till then.